Hello,
Now, before I start my rant, I will concede I am not a highly profitable trader, and I dont earn millions prop trading my own or anyone else's bunce.
I have studied, studied and studied. I did my degree, postgrad, and everything else, then started out as a clerk, then ran a hedge book, then basically ending up building models. There are a whole load of courses that are worth doing if you want to learn specifics - the CFA is the best for equities and fund management, but it will take you a couple of years to do. The CQF is probably the best course, in fact it is the best I have come across by a mile, but then these courses cost a significant amount if you are paying yourself.
Some people can trade profitably from technical analysis alone, some only use fundamentals. There is no way these courses can teach you to trade profitably - sorry, but that is the truth. If these guys could actually do that - why the rubber duck are they teaching other people?!?!?!? If I could consistently make 100% a day or whatever nonsense figure you choose, then why would I tell anyone else how to?!? How many hedge funds publicise their strategy? How many major prop desks would tell you their position?? None. Absolutely none.
I firmly believe these are a scam, same as I believe most of the sites offering to seel you trading models, timing programmes blah blah blah are all nonsense. I dont think it should even be legal, and I would be surprised if it is. Most of the people that run these types of courses are fly by night cowboys. They are relying on the allure of trading. People like the idea that using derivatives, using leverage, using spread bets for one pound and all the rest will make you serious money. That is the same reason that people play the lottery - people forget the numbers, and think it might just be me. It does not actually matter how bright you are. I am sure there are people on this list that have Phd's, and there are people with no GCSE's that make the same money. It does not mean everyone will.
Becoming a trader is not an overnight process. For example, GS want you to have a shed load of qualifications, be very sharp, and to spend at least two years working in the back or middle office, then maybe product control, risk analyst something similar. They take the best people they can find, and dont let them risk a penny for at least a couple of years. Also, there is a massive amount of training they give you!
I know this is long, dull, and not what anyone wants to here - but, there is a massive amount to learn before you start risky your own capital. Essentially, everything is against the independant trader. You can be squeezed by every man and his dog, you dont have the same access to either the market or information more importantly, and you dont have the ability to lose the capital and carry on....
Very negative, but I think very real. Trading is not easy. Fact. If you really want to do a course, for the money that has been mentioned, go to CASS and do a MSc in mathematical trading. Or do the actual professional courses. Then, you can probably get into a fund or bank that will train you, and train you properly.
Anyway, rant over, sorry about the negative tone. Probably because all the traders here are making millions and I am not
